Gu Zhaoye had always considered Ruan Nian to be a sweet and understanding presence, but for the first time, he found her words grating.
He nearly lost his temper, but he couldn’t bear the thought of embarrassing himself in front of the woman he loved. So, he swallowed his anger with visible effort. Still, the irritation in his tone was unmistakable. "Never mind. There’s no point talking to you about this."
Ruan Nian froze, stunned by his dismissiveness.
His affection meter had been so high—how could he treat her like this now?
Her expression turned wounded, and she quietly let go of his arm.
"I shouldn’t have overstepped, Mr. Gu."
She expected him to realize he’d hurt her and immediately soften, but today, for some reason, Gu Zhaoye seemed even more indifferent to her feelings than usual.
With a flick of his hand, he snapped, "Just don’t mention Gu Zhaoping around me again."
Ruan Nian’s heart sank further.
Gu Zhaoye was seething.
Though this incident wouldn’t threaten his position as the eldest grandson of the Gu family, losing a deal because of Gu Zhaoping’s meddling still infuriated him.
Gu Zhaoping was unpredictable. Until he figured out what she was scheming, he’d keep his distance.
This failure would take him a long time to recover from.
"And you—stay away from Gu Zhaoping too," he added, rubbing his temples.
But Ruan Nian wasn’t listening.
She bit her lip. The high-society reality show was about to start—how could she avoid interacting with Gu Zhaoping?
She could already picture the sympathy and affection points she’d gain if they clashed. She couldn’t pass up this opportunity.
With gentle but stubborn resolve, she said, "Don’t worry, Mr. Gu. I won’t provoke her. Even if she tries to hurt me, I’ll step back."
Gu Zhaoye’s patience frayed. That wasn’t the point! The current Gu Zhaoping wasn’t someone who’d back off just because you yielded—she’d find your weakness anyway!
He shot Ruan Nian a sharp look. "Don’t just step back—don’t engage with her at all. Understand?"
His tone was harsher than ever.
Ruan Nian pressed her lips together.
Something must have happened. Had his fiancée said something? Or was it that stand-in stirring trouble?
She forced a meek smile. "Of course, Mr. Gu."
But Gu Zhaoye didn’t notice the deliberate distance in her voice.
Without another word, he turned and walked away.
The system consoled a visibly upset Ruan Nian. "Don’t worry, Nian. His affection meter hasn’t dropped. Maybe he’s just in a bad mood today."
Ruan Nian managed a weak smile. "I hope so. But my sympathy points have been stuck for too long. I need more from this show—I can’t afford to fall short."
She had grown addicted to the rush of having endless sympathy points at her disposal, effortlessly boosting her charm whenever she pleased.
Relying on the system’s enhancements had made her dependent. She couldn’t stand the idea of being unable to refine her image at will.
Since gaining the system, she hadn’t needed grueling skincare routines, strict diets, or exhausting workouts. As long as people kept loving her, she could keep improving.
She had to maintain this life—no matter what.
Seeing that the time was about right, Ruan Nian finally contacted the production team of Seasons of the Elite.
"Hello, is this Director Mo?"
Her voice was gentle and clear, soft and sweet, instantly evoking a sense of familiarity and warmth.
The director, who had been overwhelmed with stress, froze for a moment—why did this sound so much like Ruan Nian?
"Hello... is this Ms. Ruan?"
"Yes, this is Ruan Nian."
The nationally renowned actress, widely praised for her grace, had a tone entirely different from her agent’s—soothing and pleasant to the ear.
"I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t manage my agent properly, and she said some unpleasant things to you. That was never my intention."
"I’ve already reprimanded her, and the company has taken disciplinary action. She secretly made demands behind our backs, trying to take a cut for herself. I truly apologize."
"To make it up to the production team, I’m willing to reduce my fee by 10% for the recording. If the schedule is tight, I can also join earlier—no problem at all. Feel free to put me to work."
The director was stunned. What? How could such good fortune exist?
Just moments ago, he had been devastated by the words of Ruan Nian’s agent. Never in his wildest dreams did he expect the star herself to deliver such an incredible surprise.
"Ms. Ruan, you’re too kind!" The director was nearly moved to tears, thinking to himself that Ruan Nian was truly the gentle angel everyone adored—she deserved all the love she received!
Even after being mistreated by Gu Zhaoping, she held no grudges and was even willing to lower her fee to participate.
Everyone knew her joining this show came with risks. If Gu Zhaoping targeted her again, Ruan Nian’s face—so beautiful it was practically insured—could be in danger.
In an instant, the director’s admiration and gratitude for Ruan Nian skyrocketed to new heights.
Noticing the rapid rise in favorability and sympathy points, Ruan Nian allowed herself a faint smile.
The bottleneck that had stalled her progress suddenly loosened, giving her more points to allocate.
But she didn’t use these charm points just yet—she had bigger plans for them.
With a weak cough, she said, "Director, let’s leave it at that for now. Have someone send me the contract later. I’m at the hospital, so I’ll talk to you another time."
The director was startled. "Ms. Ruan, what’s wrong? Why are you in the hospital? Are you alright?"
"It’s nothing serious, just a minor injury," Ruan Nian replied evasively, as if afraid of further questions.
The system chimed in at the perfect moment with a voice only she could hear: "Nian Nian, why are you covering for her? Gu Zhaoping was the one who beat you up, yet you’re not holding her accountable?"
"It’s fine. Ms. Gu acted impulsively. If I pursued this, it would only make things difficult for President Gu," Ruan Nian said gently. "Besides, women should support each other. There’s no point in infighting."
The director was so moved he could’ve cried.
This—this was Ruan Nian’s charm! Even after being assaulted, she could show such forgiveness, even protecting the perpetrator’s reputation. And what about Gu Zhaoping?
The already tilted scales of his judgment tipped even further. His disdain for the spoiled heiress Gu Zhaoping grew stronger.
If the footage aired and the public tore into her, well—that would just be Gu Zhaoping reaping what she sowed.
Ruan Nian hung up the phone, her expression devoid of the fragility in her earlier tone, replaced instead by indifference.
She hadn’t actually been injured at all—Gu Zhaoping hadn’t even laid a hand on her. She had merely tried to separate the two and drag Gu Zhaoye away before being swiftly subdued by him.
But the hashtag about her being assaulted by Gu Zhaoping had been trending for days. How could she not have suffered at least a little?
As for how the news would spread, that wasn’t her concern.
After all, Gu Zhaoping was just a tool in this wealthy-family drama.
...
Gu Zhaoping watched as Zheng Anling came to a panting stop in front of her. After a brief pause, she said, "You want to film a personal storyline about me?"
Zheng Anling nodded eagerly. "Sis Gu, you’re just so captivating! You’re the epitome of a dependable female leader!"
What she didn’t say aloud was that everyone was tired of male-dominated CEO tropes—it was high time for a powerful female executive to refresh their palates.
She was certain that once Gu Zhaoping appeared in the public eye, she’d cause a sensation.
Gu Zhaoping raised an eyebrow. "What did you call me?"
Only then did Zheng Anling realize she’d blurted out the informal address, which might have come off as overly familiar.
Flustered, she scrambled to backtrack. "Ah, no, Miss Gu—"
But Gu Zhaoping cut her off. "It’s fine. You can call me that."
Zheng Anling froze.
This… was unexpectedly down-to-earth?
Gu Zhaoping didn’t mind such things. In fact, she welcomed opportunities to appear approachable in certain settings.
Of course, she had no idea that Zheng Anling’s use of "Sis" wasn’t due to her perceived warmth but stemmed from genuine admiration.
If Zheng Anling could read her thoughts, she’d probably yell, "Times have changed! We don’t call someone ‘Sis’ just because they seem friendly—it’s reserved for women we admire, look up to, and respect!"
Since this was meant to be a personal feature, it would naturally serve as excellent publicity for the Gu family.
Gu Zhaoping quickly ran through the angles she could use to showcase her strengths.
This program was crucial for the Gu family’s current reputation, and she intended to treat it as a high-priority project, executing it flawlessly.
She agreed to the proposal without hesitation, and soon, it was time to leave work.
As she clocked out and headed home, countless eyes followed her—but the emotions behind those gazes were entirely different from before, laced with something far more complicated.
It seemed everyone had been stunned by her performance that day.
"The young miss was so unlike herself today… She caught an issue no one else noticed."
"Yeah, she really surprised me. I never knew she could be that sharp!"
Others, however, were preoccupied with more practical concerns.
"Enough about that—what’s going to happen now that the financing deal fell through?"
"Things might get rough for a while. We’d better tread carefully."
The image of a domineering CEO in a foul mood was deeply ingrained. Everyone feared being caught in the crossfire if Gu Zhaoping decided to vent her frustrations.
Then, someone suddenly voiced a realization. "Wait… did you notice? The young miss stayed completely calm even after the CEO called her out. She didn’t get angry at all."
The surrounding crowd paused, only now registering this detail.
Gu Zhaoping always seemed to maintain an unshakable composure, as if everything was within her control, never easily provoked to anger.
She was nothing like Chairman Gu, who was prone to outbursts.
This realization left everyone feeling slightly unsettled.
How could this be?
Before now, they hadn’t noticed anything unusual about her, but suddenly, it seemed as though the young mistress was even more suited to leadership than Chairman Gu himself.
The others shuddered at the thought of Chairman Gu’s usual intimidating demeanor and quickly shook their heads, dismissing the idea.
If Chairman Gu found out they even entertained such thoughts, would they even survive?
When Gu Zhaoping returned home, she found that someone had already recommended a suitable candidate for the private jiu-jitsu instructor she had been looking for.
"Zhaoping-jie, take a look at this coach—he’s a real expert!"
The recommender’s tone was enthusiastic, though laced with concern. "Uh, but this coach has quite the temper… and he’s very strict. Please don’t give up halfway!"
Of course, he was just saying it. He knew Gu Zhaoping’s personality—if she ever decided to quit, no one could stop her.
Gu Zhaoping paused at the message. "Give up halfway"? She had never imagined those words being associated with her. She simply replied, "Send him over."
The jiu-jitsu coach received the address to the Gu residence and made his way there, though he couldn’t help but scoff at himself.
If he weren’t in serious trouble and desperately short on money, a proud jiu-jitsu master like him would never stoop to coaching some spoiled young mistress who’d likely skip half her sessions.
Still, a job was a job. Since he’d taken it, he’d do it properly—though he hoped this young lady wouldn’t start whining about the difficulty. He had no intention of going easy on her.
…Well, maybe just a little, for the sake of the paycheck.
Having steeled himself on the way, the coach decided he’d simply wait quietly in the living room for Young Mistress Gu to appear.
He was fully prepared for her to be late, leave early, or even skip the first lesson altogether. He had no expectations.
But no one could have predicted what happened next.
The moment he knocked, the door opened to reveal a woman in her twenties already dressed in training gear, sweat glistening on her forehead—she had just finished warming up.
"You’re here. Come in." Gu Zhaoping wiped her sweat with the towel around her neck and nodded casually.
The first thing she did after returning from work was exercise.
By the time the coach arrived, she had already completed her warm-up.
"……??"
The coach was dumbfounded.
He checked his phone in disbelief—they weren’t even supposed to meet for another good while!
Why was this young mistress already fully prepped like this?!
He prided himself on being the most punctual instructor around, yet now it looked like he was the one running late.
There was no way the coach could have known.
Gu Zhaoping had a habit—she set her watch 15 minutes ahead.
When it came to punctuality, no one could outpace her.
